Due to the fact that there were a few accessibility issues with using iBooks Author on the Mac with VoiceOver to create the book, this has resulted in me not being able to quite double check accessibility for VoiceOver on iOS (the iPad) or the Mac. As a result, there are some issues with navigating the book in iOS, and the Mac in particular. These will be worked out in the new year.

For me this was an exercise in being able to write, publish, and distribute my own book.

As with anything that is developed, this is both a work in progress for accessibility, and of course updating the book contents.

Actually felt quite odd to be on the other side of the fence as it were using and creating content that also needs to be accessible: both from the content creation process, and the end user.

Thursday, 12 September 2013

Microsoft's Nokia deal by the numbers by Kara Swisher

Interesting from a general tech news, point of view with Microsoft buying Nokia's device division, last week, but I wonder what this will mean for good old Talks, and of course, if Microsoft will ever get around to making Windows phone accessible via a screen reader.

Tuesday, 3 September 2013

Myself (David Woodbridge) and another Apple Accessibility Ambassador, Craig Smith from Aspect Autism Australia, was asked by Apple Australia to present and meet with a number of people and agencies around New Zealand, concerning the built in accessibility offerings in Apple's products from the 28th to the 30th of August 2013.

I conducted workshops on the Apple accessibility product line and how it can be utilised by blind, low vision, and other people with a disability.

These workshops were conducted for the Royal New Zealand Foundation for the Blind (RNZFB) at both their Auckland and Wellington offices. They also invited teachers from Blind and Low Vision Education Network, NZ (BLENNZ) to attend these two hour hands on workshops.

We also went to ChristChurch and presented at the University Cambridge to special education support teachers. My workshops covered the use of Mac and iOS devices from a low vision and vision impaired perspective. Craig's presentation covered the use of Apple Mac and iPads with students on the autism spectrum.

In addition, we met with a number of individuals and agencies who had an interest in Apple Accessibility and helped guide their understanding of these technologies in our respective fields

This was all packed into an extremely busy 3 day schedule with flights in and out of cities around New Zealand. These sessions have really facilitated a greater level of understanding of how mainstream technology can assist in the creation of inclusive environments for all. I believe it has also further promoted the brand of Vision Australia in the vision market place.

A sneak peak at Firefox OS Accessibility from Marco's blog:

the development work on accessibility looks promising, now e have iOS, Android, Chrome OS, Microsoft Surface RT (guess we can still count this), and eventually FireFox OS. Be nice to know where Windows phone is in all of this: i.e. screen reading.

The thing a like about the potential of Firefox OS, is that it will run on low end devices which seems to be the base test bed.

Hopefully the gossip about Apple releasing a cheap iPhone will prove to be true later on this year.

Using your EyeSight camera on your Macbook or iMac to directly add iTunes gift card codes to your iTunes account now available in Australia:

This functionality has been available for a while in the US, but I stumbled across this on the weekend.

When you go to redeem iTunes gift codes, after you put in your Apple ID, you can select the Camera button, hold the iTunes gift card up in front of your EyeSight camera (after you have peeled the sticker off), it takes the code off the card, and adds it to your AppleID and tells you the amount that has been credited (of course the speaking is done if your running VoiceOver which reds it off the screen smile).

No more having to ask folks to read the code for you.

5 ways to improve Wi-Fi coverage at home:

I think my take away tips for increasing your wi-fi tips at home is to try and have the wireless router in the middle of your home, up towards the ceiling away from furniture, and make sure its not being interfered with by telephone portable base stations.

6 ways to toddler ((or children in general) proof your gadgets

Main take away points for me were: cover your power points, cover the points in the power board itself, have a rugged case on your smartphone or tablet, and have a pin number to stop purchase's or viewing content that is not appropriate.

Equipment Solutions (Vision Australia)

include:Zoomax video magnifiers: including the Aurora, Snow and Butterfly.Pocket LED sliding magnifier.Hannover Instant Kettle ñ no noise or exposure to boiling water until it pours into your cup at the push of a button.Foldi rechargeable lamp.Meteor vibrating watch ñ a unique way of telling the time by vibration. Very easy to use.

Australian Independence Products (previously Micro Marvellous)

Australian Independence Products has a range of Australian made products for people who are blind or have low vision. Video Magnifiers: The Colourama-5; low-cost Optima.The T1- Talking interface which is a universal electronics interface with speech adaptor attached, for use with equipment such as telephones, exercise bicycles, blood glucose meters, to name but a few. Computer access: CATS (The complete affordable talking system) which is a talking computer that uses Australian voice and performs various diary and tutor functions.

Lions Visual Independence

Lions Visual Independence distributors of the talking bar code scanner: ID Mate Summit.ID mate Summit is a portable ìall-in-oneî talking bar code scanner that aids visually or print impaired individuals with the identification of items via the productís bar code. Using text-to-speech and digital voice recording technologies, it allows users to access an on-board database of product descriptions, along with a tailored set of recorded voice messages. With ID mate Quest, the user can quickly add additional voice recorded information to existing products or to items not found in the database. Additional bar code labels are available to label any product or item that does not already have a bar code. Adhesive, tag, and clothing labels can be placed on nearly anything. Simply scan the bar code and add a voice recording.

NVAccess

NVAccess home of the free Non Visual Desktop Access (NVDA) screen reader for Windows.NVDA software enables blind and vision impaired people to use a computer by communicating what is on the screen using a synthetic voice or braille display, and can be installed on a PC or on portable media (such as a USB stick).

Optek Systems

Optek Systems has a range of blindness and low vision products, including:UltraCane ñ a white cane that incorporates ultrasonic sensors so that it vibrates when obstacles are ahead.ëThe Flickí is a new concept in accessing print documents, that can be used with laptop, desktop and tablet computers. The movement of the camera is controlled by the mouse, or the touchpad, or by finger gestures on a tablet. Flick can recognise any text that is displayed for viewing and can also speak the text.Plus Aladdin and Visio range of desktop video magnifiers.

Spectronics

Visitech Magnifiers

Visitech Magnifiers promotes a large range of Magnifiers to aid low vision.

It carries the Merlin Elite range which are performance desktop video magnifiers featuring HD and text to speech. Acrobat transportable video magnifier used for seeing yourself up close, reading and viewing things at a distance.Merlin is a desktop unit designed for fixed locations, reading and writing.Pebble and mini Pebble are hand held video magnifiers for home or office use.

If your lucky like me and have the latest Macbook air to come out in mid 2013, there is a software update which fix's volume fluctuations (which I experienced with VoiceOver), WiFi dropouts, and screen flickering in Adobe Photoshop.

If you check software updates on your mid 2013 Macbook air, you should find this update or you can download it from the Apple support page at:

Friday, 19 July 2013

Airfoil allows you to stream audio from your Mac (such as iTunes, ReadHear etc) to multiple Airplay devices on the same wifi network. You can select various audio application sources, control which speaker is on/off (including the Mac itself), and control each speakers volume.

I can control all the Airplay speakers that Airfoil on the Mac is accessing without having to go back to the Mac/the Airfoil application itself.

Now I have pretty much audio streaming capability throughout the house or when outside, I just run the Airfoil speaker app on my iPhone which is in my pocket most of the time.

You certainly don't need any "real" Airplay devices if you want to stream audio around your house. If you have a few old iOS devices, just install the Remote Speaker app on them, join them to your wifi network, install Airfoil on the Mac (or PC), deploy the iOS/Airplay speakers throughout your house, and stream to your hearts content.

Really does work, and its not that expensive, particularly if you have a few iOS devices laying around.

Monday, 15 July 2013

Just two Apple jokes which are sort of funny

A person farts in an Apple Store, customers are outraged as it stinks the whole store, person just says "It's not my fault there are no Windows".

If you thought that one was bad, this next one is probably worse.

Why did the Storm Trooper grab an iPhone? because he couldn't find a suitable droid.

Ok end of jokes.

SocialEyes from GWMicro is now available for ordering from the GWMicro online Store

This is the accessible application which interfaces with Facebook, and gives screen reader users great accessibility to Facebook functions.

Actually purchased the one year subscription to run on my Windows 7 laptop, and it does work really well: was able to check my messages and follow requests quite easily.

https://www.gwmicro.com/Catalog/SocialEyes/?moreInfo=8213-020

Microsoft drops the prices on the Surface RT from All Things D

Remember, this is the model that can not run standard Windows applications including screen readers (that is the Surface pro). According to this article, Microsoft is finding it hard to sell the Surface RT's, and is hoping that a price drop up to 30 percent will help.

Access All Areas (IOS and Android app)

Description from the iOS App Store:

This app is a response to the access issues that many Australians face every day. By reporting these issues you can help us keep access on the agenda.

Reports are sent using your email address to the Australian Greens Disability Issues spokesperson who will use this information to lobby for improvements to disability access. Information will be collated into a report to Ministers responsible for Disability Issues.

AFB AccessWorld July 2013 edition

In the July edition of the AFB AccessWorld 2013, major topics included: a review of the screen enhancement features in Android 4.2.2: review of TapTapSee, CamFind and Talking Goggles object identification apps for iOS: working with text on the Mac: an update to AccessNote: and other articles.

This is the back to school edition for AFB AccessWorld, which is odd for us folks in Australia since we don't start our new school year until the beginning of 2014.

revisiting HD voice - mobile voice calling technology

Sometimes I forget when I speak to another person using their iPhone 5, that we are using HD voice for our calls, which is a lot clearer than calling mobile phones that do not use this technology.

Quite a few smartphones (besides the iPhone 5) are using this technology. As long as the mobile provider provides HD voice, there is nothing for you to do besides call another person using an HD voice compatible handset and enjoy the increased voice quality, and reduced background noise.

The link below is a presentation done by Telstra when HD voice first became available on the Telstra network, and gives a comparison of HD voice and non HD voice mobile phone calls: quite surprising the difference.

GW Micro announces SocialEyes

Gw Micro (the developer of the Window-Eyes screen reader for Windows), announced last week the upcoming release of SocialEyes: a Windows application to allow a screen reader user to access Facebook in an accessible manner which will work with Windows screen readers (not just Window-Eyes).

The service will cost $50 per year (with a $25 per year introductory offer when it becomes available).

GW Micro - GW Connect

Just a reminder that GW Micro has also developed another Windows application to allow screen reader users to use Skype via the fully accessible GW Connect application which supports the functionality of Skype.

Job Access work place funding scheme in Australia

I recently had a Job Access work place assessment, and thought I would share the 3 main items which I received via this scheme as I often get asked what type of assistive technology that I actually use myself.

Pearl - portable document reading solution from Freedom Scientific

Yes, I know, it's not an Apple product (smile).

I needed a quick and reliable portable OCR solution for my work Windows 7 laptop, and the Pearl digital document camera, and the OpenBook software fitted the bill extremely well.

Braille Sense U2 from HIMS

My Pac Mate from 2003 had finally given up a year or two ago, and I needed another Braille note taking solution which would also work with my iPhone, iPad, and Mac, of course, all using VoiceOver.

What attracted me to the Braille Sense u2 was it's access to Dropbox, Twitter, and Youtube. In addition, in all the times I have assisted folks over the Help Desk in connecting the U2 to iOS and Mac, I have never had an issue.

The New MacBook air with 12 hour battery life

Yes, an Apple product at last.

The main reason for getting the Mac air was to replace my own personal MacBook pro which I was using for doing presentations via the Apple TV, podcasting with Amadeus pro, and training folks on the use of VoiceOver on the Mac. The weight reduction is great, and of course, the up to 12 hours battery life is absolutely fantastic: considering my MacBook pro was doing about 5 hours.

Monday, 1 July 2013

The Reebok ZR10 treadmill

Every now and again I get asked about exercise equipment. Well this time, I'm taking my own advice and went out last week end and purchased the Reebok ZR10 Treadmill.

It has lot's of physically accessible buttons, a screen of course, a 3.5mm cable to plug my iPhone in to, and it folds up.

I'm not actually getting it until August, but I have my favourite exercise iOS app lined up for it, Zombies, Run!: here is the description and link.

Zombies: Run!

Welcome to Season 2 of Zombies, Run!

You tie your shoes, put on your headphones, take your first steps outside. You’ve barely covered 100 yards when you hear them. They must be close. You can hear every guttural breath, every rattling groan - they’re everywhere. Zombies. There’s only one thing you can do: Run!

Zombies, Run! is an ultra-immersive running game and audio adventure, co-created with award-winning novelist Naomi Alderman. We deliver the story straight to your headphones through orders and voice recordings - and when you get back home, you use the supplies you’ve collected while running to build and grow your base.

BBC NEWS - “The only way to save yourself is to run for real.”WIRED - “In the style of Runkeeper, with an exciting undead twist.”LIFEHACKER - “A really cool way to get outside and exercise.”CNN - “Turns exercise into a game - a terrifying, terrifying game.”NPR - "It gets you moving!"TIME.COM - "Takes all the fun of a zombie game and funnels it into a fitness app."

WHAT PLAYERS SAY:“Evaded all zombie mobs :-) One of my best sprints ever; this app works!”“This game will make you sweat. Perfect junction between game design and run tracker.”“Just tried @zombiesrungame and for the first time in my life I feel truly alive.”

WALK, JOG, OR RUN ANYWHEREZombies, Run! works anywhere and at any speed. You can jog in a park, run along a beach, or walk along a trail. It even works on treadmills!

YOU ARE RUNNER 5 Hundreds of lives are counting on you. You've got to rebuild your base from a few shivering survivors into a fortified beacon of civilization by collecting critical supplies and avoiding roving zombie hordes. Can you save them and learn the truth about the zombie apocalypse?

A WORLD OF STORIESYou become the hero in an epic story of humanity’s struggle for survival where your running *really* matters - and there’s a deeper mystery to be uncovered as well... This app includes all 26 missions from Season 1 as well as the first 7 missions from Season 2; and there'll be a further 60+ Season 2 missions released weekly and available for purchase!

YOUR OWN MIXChoose your own custom playlists before you start running: the story unfolds in between your tracks through a series of dynamic radio messages and voice recordings.

INTERVAL TRAINING - WITH ZOMBIESWith our optional ‘Zombie Chases’ mode, you’ll need to increase your speed and work up a sweat if you hear zombies on your tail. That’s right - we’ve made interval training *fun*!

VIEW YOUR RUNS ONLINE WITH ZOMBIELINKRegister with our free ZombieLink service to view and share your runs online, complete with maps, full run history, and the ability to ‘play back’ zombie chases so you can see how much faster you ran when the living dead were right behind you! Plus you can sync your runs with Runkeeper and export them as GPX files.

KEEP THE SURVIVORS ALIVEYou automatically collect items like medicine, batteries, and ammo while running - but when you're back home, who needs them more: the soldiers or the doctors? Which buildings need extra defenses? It’s up to you - and the bigger your base, the more missions you can play.

I'll let you know how it all goes when it arrives. Should be fun, and tiring (smile).

Solo-DX releases more audio description tracks

Found on Twitter today, that Solo-DX has released audio described tracks for the first 8 episodes of series 1: Start Trek: The Next Generation. Looking forward to rediscovering these episodes with audio description.

Feed Wrangler web site:

Feed Wrangler iOS

ReadKit Mac

Using my Mac like my iPhone: turning on/off wifi and Bluetooth

When I fly, I have to put all of my iOS devices in airplane mode, now I can do the same with my Macbook pro. With Airplane Setting, I can use it from the Extra's menu on my Mac to quickly toggle both wifi and Bluetooth off at the same time: no more fiddling with separate menus: very very nice. Not to mention, it also saves on battery power when you don't need wifi or Bluetooth.

Airplane Setting

The first PDF reader for visually impaired people

I'm not exactly sure if its the first actual PDF reader for vision impaired folks, and I think its only for low vision, not people who are blind: at least it does not work with VoiceOver on the Mac. I've put the link here in case anyone wants to try it out. Works on both Mac and Windows.

Apple TV update for 2nd/3d generation Apple TVs (5.3)

Crunchyroll has over 20.000 videos and 10.000 hours of anime, Korean live drama and live action titles.

Qello is a streaming on demand service for HD concert films and music documentaries spanning from the 1920's to now.

You can subscribe to a 7 day trial for either subscription channel directly from the Apple TV by just putting in an email address. Just remember to cancel subscription if you don't want to continue via your iTunes account.

also mentioned other channels including HBO Go, ESPN, and Sky News, but I guess due to licensing agreements etc, these are not available in Australia.

The other item in this update was reliability improvements in signing in to the iTunes store and playing purchased content.

It is good to see new channels coming to the Apple TV, just wish there was more channels to choose from in Australia. Then again, I can always AirPlay ABC iView or the BBC iPlayer apps from my iPad on to the Apple TV.

The iPhones Marimba ring tone has been made in to a music video from Cult of Mac:

Seven great works that inspired geeks to change the world from ReadWrite:

These works include: NeuroMancer by William Gibson, The Shockwave Rider by John Brunner, Stranger In A Strange Land by Robert Heinlein, The Fountains of Paradise by Arthur C Clark, Hyperion by Dan Simmons, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov, and Cryptonomicon by Neil Stephenson.

Sadly, I've only read 3 out of these 7: I, Robot, A Stranger in a Strange Land, and Hyperion.

Actually thinking about science fiction, and quotable quotes, my most favourite one is from Arthur C Clark:

Thursday, 20 June 2013

Crunchyroll has over 20.000 videos and 10.000 hours of anime, Korean live drama and live action titles.

Qello is a streaming on demand service for HD concert films and music documentaries spanning from the 1920's to now.

You can subscribe to a 7 day trial for either subscription channel directly from the Apple TV by just putting in an email address. Just remember to cancel subscription if you don't want to continue via your iTunes account.

also mentioned other channels including HBO Go, ESPN, and Sky News, but I guess due to licensing agreements etc, these are not available in Australia.

The other item in this update was reliability improvements in signing in to the iTunes store and playing purchased content.

It is good to see new channels coming to the Apple TV, just wish there was more channels to choose from in Australia. Then again, I can always AirPlay ABC iView or the BBC iPlayer apps from my iPad on to the Apple TV.

I actually still remember when I got my first talking mobile phone (well PDA actually), it was the Nokia Communicator 910I with Talks I believe in 2003. The actual phone part of the PdA didn't talk, but the actual PdA which interacted with the phone did quite nicely. It was actually a demo done by FreedomBox (now Serotek) which put me on to the Nokia Communicator in the first place if my memory is not playing tricks.

Since then I only had two other Nokia Symbian based phones: the N70, and the N82.

On the AT Help Desk at Vision Australia, we still had folks purchasing the Nokia C5 with Talks up to now or upgrading their existing Talks licenses. I believe we are still trying to source some more Nokia C5's, but I'm not sure what the outcome will be. In the meantime, Vision Australia will continue to sell or upgrade Talks licenses as far as I know. However, it really does sound like the end has come at last for Nokia Symbian based handsets in general.

if folks really really want a Nokia based Symbian phone capable of running Talks, there is always eBay. After all they have been around for quite a long time, and this may be the chance to pick up a bargain for a second-hand handset.

I must admit for me, since I got my hands on my first iPhone in 2009 when VoiceOver was first introduced, I've never used a physical keypad based phone since. Actually my work phone is my original iPhone, and my personal phone is the iPhone 5.

I guess most things have to come to an end eventually, 10 years or so for Talks is pretty good.

Orcam - Google Glass style device for blind or low vision

This technology just sounds amazing - similar idea to Google Glass but for blind or low vision

Orcam is a sensor that can be mounted on a pair of existing glass's (with the processor box in your pocket) that see's what is in front of you, understands what information you seek, and provides the information audibly through a bone conduction ear peace.

Vision Australia will be hoping to get a sample of the device, and as soon as we do, we will share are findings. The following link will take you to the Orcam website for more information and a demonstration of the sensor in use covering reading a newspaper article, reading a menu selection, identifying a packet of tea, identifying money, and checking to see if a traffic light is red or green.

Mac App - Battery Monitor - monitor battery level via speech output

This is a Mac app that I've wanted for quite a while. Rather than having to go to my Extra's Status menu on the Mac with the VoiceOver command VO+MM, and then VO+Right arrow over to read the battery level on my Macbook pro: I can just leave this app running and get notified by system speech every 10 percent of the battery recharge or discharge.

Once the app was downloaded and installed from the Mac App Store, all I had to do to enable speech output for the monitoring of the battery level, was to bring up Preferences with Command+, (comma), Notifications tab, and in my case, I selected to be notified of both recharge and discharge: Speech was already selected.

Now I can just use my Macbook pro, and get notified of the discharge state when on battery or the recharge state when I've plugged the power back in without having to go anywhere near the Extra's Status menu.

Organising equipment for travel - buying a new computer bag

Finally updated my computer bag which I've been using for almost 10 years when travelling to see clients, attend conferences or give presentations.

I always dislike putting any of my equipment when travelling in to someone else's hands as I'm not sure how the bag that contains the equipment will be treated, and if possible, always preferred carrying my stuff onboard: whether an aircraft, train etc.

Unfortunately, due to the size of my current computer bag, it wouldn't go in to the overhead storage on aircraft, and the flight attendants usually had to stick it somewhere else, which meant again, I couldn't keep an eye on it as it were.

I had an opportunity this week to update my computer bag, and rather than going for bigger is better or getting a similar bag, decided to get a bag that will fit in to the over head lockers on aircraft, hold it easily on a train or bus, fit in an overnight change of clothes, and be able to both carry or wheel it.

After only a small bit of shopping around, I purchased the HighSierra freewheel wheeled backpack.

The backpack has 3 zipped compartments (small, medium and large), indented wheels on either side, lugs on either side opposite wheels so that bag is sturdy when put down, a telescoping handle covered by a zipper when collapsed, a soft carrying handle just behind the telescoping handle, comfortable shoulder straps, and a reasonably large pocket on the side that you could stick in a bottle of water.

In side the large zipped compartment (behind the shoulder straps and where the handle extends), is a padded compartment to hold a laptop, plus plenty of room for clothes or anything else.

The middle medium zipped compartment, has an open pocket on the side closest to the large compartment, with the rest of the pocket being open to stick anything you like in to it.

The back small zipped compartment, has two pockets on the side closes to the middle compartment, two small pockets that you could fit a phone or digital recorder in to, and a bit of space for such items as UsB sticks, SD cards etc.

In to this backpack, I was able to fit quite easily, my Macbook pro, Logitech solar K760 BT keyboard, iPad, Apple TV, Magic trackpad and Magic mouse, my iPHone, two digital recorders, all the necessary chargers/cables, and still have plenty of room for a change of clothes.

Haven't had a chance to wheel it around yet, but as a backpack, it is very comfortable, the wheels don't stick in to you, and it doesn't stick out to far behind you so if you turn around quickly, you won't knock anyone over.

Having this all in one bag, means that I have both hands free if its on my back or one hand if I'm wheeling it, which is a bonus if you have to control your Guide Dog at the same time (smile).

Of course, also having such a bag, means you can do the dash from aircraft to taxi without having to wait ages to get your bag from the baggage claim area.

I actually still remember when I got my first talking mobile phone (well PDA actually), it was the Nokia Communicator 910I with Talks I believe in 2003. The actual phone part of the PdA didn't talk, but the actual PdA which interacted with the phone did quite nicely. It was actually a demo done by FreedomBox (now Serotek) which put me on to the Nokia Communicator in the first place if my memory is not playing tricks.

Since then I only had two other Nokia Symbian based phones: the N70, and the N82.

On the AT Help Desk at Vision Australia, we still had folks purchasing the Nokia C5 with Talks up to now or upgrading their existing Talks licenses. I believe we are still trying to source some more Nokia C5's, but I'm not sure what the outcome will be. In the meantime, Vision Australia will continue to sell or upgrade Talks licenses as far as I know. However, it really does sound like the end has come at last for Nokia Symbian based handsets in general.

if folks really really want a Nokia based Symbian phone capable of running Talks, there is always eBay. After all they have been around for quite a long time, and this may be the chance to pick up a bargain for a second-hand handset.

I must admit for me, since I got my hands on my first iPhone in 2009 when VoiceOver was first introduced, I've never used a physical keypad based phone since. Actually my work phone is my original iPhone, and my personal phone is the iPhone 5.

I guess most things have to come to an end eventually, 10 years or so for Talks is pretty good.

Friday, 14 June 2013

Finally updated my computer bag which I've been using for almost 10 years when travelling to see clients, attend conferences or give presentations.

I always dislike putting any of my equipment when travelling in to someone else's hands as I'm not sure how the bag that contains the equipment will be treated, and if possible, always preferred carrying my stuff onboard: whether an aircraft, train etc.

Unfortunately, due to the size of my current computer bag, it wouldn't go in to the overhead storage on aircraft, and the flight attendants usually had to stick it somewhere else, which meant again, I couldn't keep an eye on it as it were.

I had an opportunity this week to update my computer bag, and rather than going for bigger is better or getting a similar bag, decided to get a bag that will fit in to the over head lockers on aircraft, hold it easily on a train or bus, fit in an overnight change of clothes, and be able to both carry or wheel it.

After only a small bit of shopping around, I purchased the HighSierra freewheel wheeled backpack.

The backpack has 3 zipped compartments (small, medium and large), indented wheels on either side, lugs on either side opposite wheels so that bag is sturdy when put down, a telescoping handle covered by a zipper when collapsed, a soft carrying handle just behind the telescoping handle, comfortable shoulder straps, and a reasonably large pocket on the side that you could stick in a bottle of water.

In side the large zipped compartment (behind the shoulder straps and where the handle extends), is a padded compartment to hold a laptop, plus plenty of room for clothes or anything else.

The middle medium zipped compartment, has an open pocket on the side closest to the large compartment, with the rest of the pocket being open to stick anything you like in to it.

The back small zipped compartment, has two pockets on the side closes to the middle compartment, two small pockets that you could fit a phone or digital recorder in to, and a bit of space for such items as UsB sticks, SD cards etc.

In to this backpack, I was able to fit quite easily, my Macbook pro, Logitech solar K760 BT keyboard, iPad, Apple TV, Magic trackpad and Magic mouse, my iPHone, two digital recorders, all the necessary chargers/cables, and still have plenty of room for a change of clothes.

Haven't had a chance to wheel it around yet, but as a backpack, it is very comfortable, the wheels don't stick in to you, and it doesn't stick out to far behind you so if you turn around quickly, you won't knock anyone over.

Having this all in one bag, means that I have both hands free if its on my back or one hand if I'm wheeling it, which is a bonus if you have to control your Guide Dog at the same time (smile).

Of course, also having such a bag, means you can do the dash from aircraft to taxi without having to wait ages to get your bag from the baggage claim area.

iOS 7 beta and OS X Mavericks beta: commenced evaluation

Just a note to say I've commenced looking at both iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks from an accessibility perspective.

Unlike lots of places on the Internet who can't stop talking about beta software before it's released, I'll be posting information and audio demos of iOS 7 and OS X Mavericks when it's available later on this year after September.

My main reason for not spouting off about iOS 7 beta and OS X Mavericks beta, besides the fact that I signed a NDA, is that things change over a beta testing cycle, and what may seem good or bad for accessibility, will change.

If you want to get involved with beta testing iOS 7 or OS X Mavericks because you want your voice to be heard, it's quite simple, get yourself a developer account.

Just a tip: don't bother sending an email to accessibility@apple.com concerning issues with pre-release software. If you have a developer account, that is the way you give feedback about pre-release software that you are testing.

Monday, 10 June 2013

Apple WWDC 2013 Keynote - my notes

My notes of interest from the WWDC 2013 Keynote address held in San Francisco on June the tenth at 10AM. Although, when I was listening to the Keynote, it was actually June the eleventh at 3AM in Australia: o'well, the things we do that we are enthusiastic about.

I've also included links where appropriate which will take you to the Apple.com website for more information (the site was updated with these links after the Keynote address).

Sunday, 9 June 2013

Mac App - Battery Monitor - monitor battery level via speech output

This is a Mac app that I've wanted for quite a while. Rather than having to go to my Extra's Status menu on the Mac with the VoiceOver command VO+MM, and then VO+Right arrow over to read the battery level on my Macbook pro: I can just leave this app running and get notified by system speech every 10 percent of the battery recharge or discharge.

Once the app was downloaded and installed from the Mac App Store, all I had to do to enable speech output for the monitoring of the battery level, was to bring up Preferences with Command+, (comma), Notifications tab, and in my case, I selected to be notified of both recharge and discharge: Speech was already selected.

Now I can just use my Macbook pro, and get notified of the discharge state when on battery or the recharge state when I've plugged the power back in without having to go anywhere near the Extra's Status menu.

The app was only $5 or so from the Mac App Store and well worth the price. I've pasted in a description from the Mac App Store (with a link to follow), info about the speech option is at the bottom of the description.

NOTE: A computer with a battery compliant with the Smart Battery standard is required. All portable Apple computers with Intel processors fulfill this requirement.

More and more computers are mobile devices nowadays. The most important prerequisite for a portable computer is a chargable battery which keeps the device powered. Batteries are not really cheap replacement parts and they are subject to wear and tear. Their lifetimes should be optimized, handling them with the necessary care. Battery Monitor is a small auxiliary application useful in this regard. It offers the following features:

- Display of the charge state in the Dock: This is useful if you cannot or do not like to use the display in the menubar of Mac OS X, e.g. when you have a screen which is not very wide.

- Display of internal battery information: In addition to the charge state, many other technical specifications, e.g. age, temperature, discharge current, number of charge cycles, expected lifetime, or capacity can be retrieved. The states of each of the battery cells and the manufacturer of the cells can also be determined.

- Capturing charge and discharge curves: The history of the readings measured by the battery unit can be displayed graphically. This way you can plot the charge and discharge curves, for example, one of the most important characteristics for the health of a battery. You can also review the graphical profile of the amperage drawn by the computer, helping to find “power guzzling applications”.

- Bookkeeping of the aging process of the battery: Battery Monitor automatically keeps a log about the charge capacity of the battery which will decrease as the battery ages. This helps you to exactly monitor how the behavior of the battery is changing over time. You can assess if your battery is working normally or if it might be defective. You can also estimate more exactly when the right time has come to purchase a new battery. For computers with replaceable battery units, Battery Monitor can of course monitor multiple battery packs at the same time.

- Notifications during charge or discharge: In addition to the display of the charge state in the Dock, Battery Monitor can optionally inform you about the progress of the charge or discharge process by other means. Inobtrusive notifications using speech, the Notification Center of OS X, or via Growl technology can be set up.

Monday, 3 June 2013

Using MarsEdit (blog editor) to post to my own blog

I came across MarsEdit, a Mac application, which allows you to post directly or work on a post draft blog to various blog sites such as WordPress, Blogger etc.

My first thought to myself was "why haven't I been using this before". I can work on a blog draft for as long as I like (such as items to the next Talking Tech program), post when I'm ready, and edit existing posted blogs.

I agree with the below article from The Loop that we will see iOS 7 (which hopefully will be available for developers to download), Mac OS X 10.9 (next major upgrade to OS X) top features (may be not to download by developers), and some new hardware on the Mac side of things. Given that the seed cycle for OS X 10.8.4 apparently has just completed, this may be available to download which according to some sources has improvements for VoiceOver in text and pdf documents. So no iPhone, iPad, smart watch etc.

Hopefully I'll be able to stream the keynote address via the Apple TV as I did with Apple's last keynote address.

Will be getting up way before the crack of dawn (Australian time(, and letting you know what actually got announced in the afternoon with the next Talking Tech.

From CyberShack - How to set up a home wireless network

With all of the wireless devices around these days, this article is a great reminder on how to go about setting up your home wireless network and connecting your wireless devices such as laptops, tablets, phones etc.

Audio Archery - Archery for your Ears

Audio archery brings archery to IOS. Use only your ears and your reflexes to shoot targets. The game is entirely auditory, so there are no pictures or icons. You will hear a target move from left to right. When it is centered, flick down on the screen with one finger to pull back your bow. Release your finger to fire your arrow. The game consists of 10 rounds with 7 shots each. Your goal is to meet or exceed the minimum score given to pass to the next round. Can you pass the tenth round and become the audio archery champion?